Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1887-02-05

t084l8 ana f1C0 owe C0mp10X1009 Wualy
proclaiming the higher. castles. Ths brief
waving of the victims arms which Begg
had sesn soon ceased a she was drawn out
and under into deep water. Second after
second passed and in the utmost suspense
We continued on the lookout for her. reap
pearance, Is still We tore UPWARDS with al
the strength Of the mulahs and our own
combined, rapidly decreasing the distance.
The group Of women by this time . all
gathered on the sand, and were gazing in
and beating their breasts At length a
speck appeared ON the surface about mid.
way between NJ and the shore, and n arm
was thrown above, then the head and
! shoulders of the woman were visible as she
| still family struggled in the grip of the
monster. For nearly q minute she
| remained above then suddenly disaF-
| psared before ever we were near enough to
risk an aim that might avoid the woman
and strike the mere speck Of the crocodile's
snout that now and then showed above
water. Again the brute rose with his vic
tim, 10 quite near to US, but only for a
moment, and disappeared ere we could press
our fingers on the trigger. We never got
another chance Of him. His cunning had
espted mischief in our n~eighborhood, and
next time his horny o appeared it
was after q long interval and far, away.
We knew he would never let Us near him
again. It was terrible thus to feel our utter
helplessness amid the scene. that was
being enacted before our eyes-a young
woman, in the midst of full life and health
snatched away in an instant to death SO
horrible.
The others having watched tho vain re-
suit Of our efforts now fled in CONSERVATION
to their village, and soon a crowd of vii
layers, with the friends and relatives Of the
lost woman, came hurrying down to the
ghaut; - nearest female relatives giving
vent to he loud wailing and demonsrrativs
grief of their country.
We learnt from these that the victim was
q young Brahmini woman, daughter of
the chief baboo of the village, and who had
been recently married. Her husband was
there too, beating his chest and seemingly
overcome with grief though we doubted
not the less tho poor man, tat he would
soon set about consoling hiIoe& with an-
other fair Brahmini and another marriage
according to the custom of similarly af-
Eicted Hindoos and tho cast law, which
allows the ahiSh-caste widower, though not
the unfortunate widow, to supply with IN
other the place of The deceased.
A few days aster this a crocodile ap.
peared lowering agound the bathing-ghaut,
day after day, just shossag his snout now
and then above water, as if with whetted
appetite hs were laying in wait for fresh
prey. He was evidently the robber. About
this time my friend BeSg called over again,
and, hearing Of the temperance OF the
enemy, together we concerted a plan OF at
tack. Getting iSR eur boat one early
morning again we foated quietly down till
we came nearly opposite the bathing-ghaut
deserted since the catastrophe-and' then
dropped overheard a small dead kid, withi2
which was carefully concealed a treble
barbed hook connected by a chain with a
coil Of rope that lay within the boat This
bait, with a float attached, we let gradually
drop astern till some thirty or forty yards
Of rope remained between it n the boat as
we floated slowly down stream.
Time passed, but not a ripple or speck on
the CLASSY surface relieved our expectation,
while we continued lacking up and dow
stream with the brat in our rear. An hour
passed and still not a trace of the enemy.
Our patience is beginning to get exhausted
when a slight lurch of the float is immedi-
ately followed by its disappearance. With
all speed we now propelled the BOAT away
so as to put a sudden strain on the rope,
which suddenly frightened to its utmost
showing that the enemy was hooked. A con-
vulsion of the water and frantic plugging
succeeded, during which head and tail of
The reptile appeared a~lternatively above
water as if in vain attempts to dislodge the
s3cure hold Of the hook.
Then a sudden, strong strain on the rope
showed that he had put on steam OF he
went, towing us rapidly along at a pace
that fully showed his strength and tried the
quality of the rope. but after several hun.
bred yards Of progress under this novel mo-
tive power, gradually our speed decreased
till at length we came to a stand-still
In triumph the natives hauled him up on
the bank, q truly formidable monster. He
was one of the largest I ever saw, and
measured ten feet from snout to tip of tail;
and the jaws and double row of teeth were
such as might we'll make one shiver. Many
were the excavations and multifarious the
forms Of Oriental ~Billingsgate and invective
hurled by the natives upon the head of the
marauder that had thrown gloom
over their village, and for which all this
metaphor Of their country was
exhausted The relatives of the reptile,
present, past and future, to at least the tenth
generation, were DETAINED in the most oppra
brious terms. As he lay there still alive, still
savagely swapping his jaws, he looked as l.
he would TAIN even yet have a few of his de-
but few minutes in the water: Thu.
work of Nemesis was claimed by the relatives
of the deceased, who promptly despatched
him; and the crowd, seemingly with their
minds much relieved, and with triumphant
tones in their voices, filed away towards their
village, while some chumars at my bidding
prepared to denude the reptile of his skin as
. 0smento Of the occasion. On opening
hin, too sure proof was foundo of his identity
the destroyer, as had been fully antici-
pated.
The demon of the bathing ghaut having
been destroyed, my friend and l also repaired
to our bungalow, well satisfied at having re-
moved what might have been long the
scourge of the neighbourhood--"W. s" il
London Society.